CM urges Sushma to set up ‘Visa on Arrival’ station at city airport

Bhubaneswar: In view of the increase in foreign tourist arrivals in the state after the recent international connectivity with Air Asia, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today wrote a letter to External Affair Minister Sushma Swaraj requesting her to set up a Visa on Arrival station at the Bhubaneswar airport here.

In the letter, Patnaik stated that the number of foreign arrivals is significantly increasing following the international connectivity with Air Asia. Hence, a Visa on Arrival station should be set up at the Bhubaneswar airport here in order to facilitate the travel of arriving tourists and boost tourist footfalls to the State.

It may be mentioned here that direct international flights from Bhubaneswar to Kuala Lumpur began with the commencement of Air Asia operations.

Besides, the Chief Minister has also written a letter to Civil Aviation Minister A. Gajapathi Raju to include Bhubaneswar as a stop for the Colombo-Varanasi Air India flight. This will help in increasing the tourist footfall in Odisha especially the researchers from Colombo for research at various Buddhist sites here in the state.